Day 50 Suez Canal

Thursday, clear and sunny, hazy in the distance. I think I am finished with long sleeve shirts until we reach China. Had corn flakes today. Walked to the focsl after breakfast. Mid-afternoon, I hauled out a deck chair for a while. There is a real lot of sand here, with mountains in the background. Here's what happens: At the designated time, ships head in from both ends and meet in the middle, in Bitter Lake. A lottery determines a ship's position in line. For the most part, the canal is only wide enough for one ship. Ships travel at 12 knots, about 1 mile apart, to allow space to stop. There are no locks. Our ship weighed anchor in Poat Said at 0100 this morning, and passed through the first half of the canal. Stopped at 0800 and waited until 1500. Passed through the second half, arriving in the Suez Gulf at 1900. On the second part, our position was 20 of 23. The passage requires 3 pilots. The Egyptian flag is flown during the passage. This is referred to as Marlboro Country, because the pilots ask for Marlboros.